Former world champions Anthony Joshua and Joseph Parker on Saturday re-established their heavyweight title credentials with victories on the same Riyadh bill.
British boxer Joshua produced one of his best performances of recent times by stopping Sweden’s Otto Wallin, who was pulled out by his corner after the fifth round of a one-sided bout.
Earlier, Parker enjoyed a unanimous points-decision win over fellow former world champion Deontay Wilder, with the New Zealander triumphing 118-111, 118-110, 120-108 in a dominant display that appeared to scupper prefight talk the American would next face Joshua.
Photo: Reuters
There had also been speculation that whoever triumphed in a Wilder-Joshua bout would face the winner of February’s clash between Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk, who between them hold all the major versions of the world heavyweight title.
However, Joshua said he paid no attention to Wilder’s fight.
“I wasn’t watching. I just focused on myself... Deontay, everything that he said about me, I could rip him apart right now, but I’m going to take the higher ground,” he told DAZN.
The victory gave Joshua his third win of the year after he beat Jermaine Franklin Jr by unanimous decision in April before a seventh-round stoppage of Robert Helenius in August.
It also took the 34-year-old’s professional record to 27 wins and three defeats as he inflicted the first inside the distance loss of Wallin’s career.
Joshua is looking to become a three-time world champion following two defeats by Usyk and a shock 2019 loss to Andy Ruiz.
“Not so much a throwback fight, just another day in the office,” Joshua said. “You want to do whatever it takes to be victorious. That’s all I want to be.”
Wallin’s only previous professional loss had come against Fury, but he had no answer from the opening bell against Joshua, who with just more than a minute of the fifth round remaining produced a superb left hook that had Wallin stumbling toward the ropes.
Earlier Parker, comprehensively defeated Wilder in the former WBC champion’s first bout in more than two years.
“Everyone had other plans, but this is God’s plan,” said Parker, 31, who improved to 34-3 with 23 knockouts after sparring with Fury.
Tallon Griekspoor on Friday stunned top seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 7-6 (7/5), 7-6 (7/4) in the second round at Indian Wells, avenging a devastating loss to the German at Roland Garros last year. Zverev, the world No. 2 who is heading the field of the prestigious ATP Masters event with No. 1 Jannik Sinner serving a three-month drugs ban, is the first Indian Wells men’s top seed to lose his opening match since Andy Murray in 2017. It was a cherished win for Griekspoor, who had lost five straight matches — including four last year — to the German. That included a five-setter
Five-time champion Novak Djokovic on Saturday tumbled out of the Indian Wells ATP Masters, falling in his first match to lucky loser Botic van de Zandschulp as two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz advanced. “No excuses for a poor performance,” 24-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic said after 37 unforced errors in a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1 defeat. “It doesn’t feel great when you play this way on the court,” he said. “But congratulations to my opponent — just a bad day in the office, I guess, for me.” Djokovic is just the latest in Van de Zandschulp’s string of superstar victims. He
Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday held their nerve to beat Liverpool 4-1 on penalties and reach the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals after their tie finished one-apiece on aggregate, while Bayern Munich saw off Bayer 04 Leverkusen to complete a 5-0 win over both legs. Lamine Yamal and Raphinha fired Barcelona into the next round as the Catalans bested SL Benfica 3-1, and Inter booked a last-eight meeting with Bayern by seeing off Feyenoord 2-1. At Anfield, Ousmane Dembele netted the only goal of the night as PSG bounced back from Liverpool’s late winner last week to force the tie to extra-time and penalties. Maligned
Taiwan’s Lin Chun-yi on Wednesday inflicted a first-round defeat on former badminton world No. 1 Viktor Axelsen at the All England Open. Lin came out of top after a back-and-forth first game before Axelsen dominated the second, but the Dane was not able to keep that form in the decider as Lin reeled off six points in a row on the way to a 21-19, 13-21, 21-11 victory. “If I don’t play my best, everyone can win against me,” said Axelsen, the world No. 4. “Today’s opponent played a fantastic game; it was disappointing, but that is how it is.” “I just tried